Top four takeaways from Duke basketball win over Kansas
By Chad Wickham
Fourth takeaway: Matthew Hurt and Vernon Carey Jr. form a solid Duke frontcourt
This was a tough matchup in Madison Square Garden for the two freshmen in their first games but power forward Matthew Hurt and center Vernon Carey Jr. held their own against the experienced Kansas frontcourt. Both of them had trouble at times dealing with the physicality from Udoka Azubuike and David McCormack.
The good news is Hurt and Carey Jr. — ranked No. 12 and No. 6 on the 247Sports 2019 Composite, respectively — won’t face many other frontcourts with the size the Jayhawks have.
A lot of the Duke duo’s success came when they pulled the Kansas bigs out on the perimeter. Hurt and Carey Jr. combined to go 5-for-9 from beyond the arc and if they can do that consistently, they are going to be tough matchups for opposing frontcourts all season.
Duke did this a few times on Tuesday night but one thing I would like to see more of is Carey getting the ball at the top of the key. He proved he can knock down that outside shot and when he gets the ball up there, it is going to make him more versatile and will also open up driving lanes for the guards.
The Blue Devils will look to improve to 2-0 on the season when it faces Colorado State from Cameron Indoor Stadium on Friday night at 7:30 p.m. EST (on ACCN).
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